The signing of the Brazilian worldwide was comfortably completed inside the deadline but Conte has acknowledged that he had not foreseen that the 29-year-old would make his return to Stamford Bridge.
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“The same for David Luiz”.
Luiz made a shock return to Stamford Bridge in the final hours of the transfer window in a deal reportedly worth around £34 million, just two years after Paris Saint-Germain made him the most expensive defender ever when they paid £50m to take him from Stamford Bridge. I put my sweat into my players.
Luiz was famously labelled a “Playstation” footballer by Gary Neville during his first spell in the Premier League and Conte will persist with fielding him in defence, rather than midfield, where the Brazilian has previously been used.
He added: ‘I think a great defender must be able to play football. Every player. Also when you are 32, 33, 36.
“We reached two targets, two good signings for us in David Luiz and Marcos Alonso“.
“He wanted to play for Chelsea”.
This is why Conte is optimistic about improving the player the club have bought for him.
“I remember that, before my arrival, many people told me: ‘No good, these defenders”.
Speaking to L’Equipe, Hazard said: “Conte puts trust in his players and now we are good after an ugly season past year”.
“He is very, very good – he improves the teams he works with a lot”. But I also think the coach must improve these players. This is important for me.
“To improve your players and to work”.
“I enjoyed playing in his team and I will look forward to seeing him this weekend”.
The same for David Luiz.
‘”At this moment we must focus only on our game”, Conte said. You can always improve.
With no European football to stretch Conte’s squad, Luiz sees no reason why a sustained title assault should not be on the agenda.
Chelsea have no new injuries after the worldwide break, though Luiz and Alonso are unlikely to start against Swansea City and Kurt Zouma remains unavailable. “If you think that the players improve only by looking at them, it’s impossible”, he said.
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“We know United and City are two great teams”.
